Ahhh, controversy. A little bit of it, every now and then, is a good thing.

Venus Williams is out of the French Open singles tournament — she lost Saturday to Nadia Petrova in a fourth-round match — but she dominated the opening week in Paris. Or rather her fashion choices did.

It's all been well documented, of course: The lacy, corset-like cancan dress. The skin-toned shorts she wore underneath. The illusion of nudity.

"The illusion of just having bare skin is definitely for me a lot more beautiful," Williams said. "For me, it's just been pushing myself as a designer, too."

Williams has a degree in fashion design from the Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale, and she does design her own lines — meaning she is no doubt looking for any buzz about her on-court outfits can generate.

Williams wore the skin-tone shorts in January at the Australian Open— causing a stir in Melbourne — so there should have been no surprise there would be reaction again.

The truth is, fashion choices have long been part of the deal in tennis. And despite what Williams suggested — "Lace has never been done before in tennis" — lace has indeed made an appearance.

"When I saw the picture (of Venus), I didn't even equate the two," Moran, who will be 87 in September, told Florida Today in a telephone interview from her Los Angeles apartment. "There was no relationship in my mind. It was so dissimilar anyhow.

"I just thought it was very attractive and cute," she said of Williams' outfit.

Gussie, and Venus, aren't alone.

Anne White wore a white body suit to Wimbledon in the 1980s.

Venus' sister, Serena, has made her own fashion statements, often at the U.S. Open — including the "boots" and jeans skirt and the black Lycra cat suit, among other innovations.

Tatiana Golovin caused an uproar at white-outfits-only Wimbledon in 2007 with a pair of red shorts under her white dress. Because they were shorter than the hem of her dress, they didn't fracture the ordinance.

Bethanie Mattek-Sands has pushed the envelope in the past. Cowboy hats. Leopard-print shorts. Her ever-present tube socks. She noted she had faced a fine at least once, and she talked about instances where disapproving tournament referees sent her back to the locker room

Of course, it hasn't just been women. Andre Agassi was known early in his career for unorthodox fashion sense, including denim shorts. He skipped Wimbledon from 1988-90 because he didn't want to wear white.

French Tennis Federation spokesman Christophe Proust was asked last week about Venus' outfit.

"It gives the illusion that she's naked (underneath), but she isn't," he said. "Maybe some people didn't like it, but, from what I know, there was no angry reaction from the organizers or French federation officials."

The tennis at the French Open is compelling enough to keep the attention of tennis fans, without a doubt. But publicity, even negative, isn't necessarily a bad thing.

Leave it to Mattek-Sands to put it in perspective: "I've pushed the line a few times. It's really a hazy line. So I think it's cool when people push it. I like it. I think it brings more interest. I mean, obviously everyone is talking about it, so it's great. Tennis is getting in the news. It's on the front page when I open up my browsers and everything just because she's wearing something different.

"So I think it's great."

Tennis shorts

•The American effort at Roland Garros certainly could have been better — no American men in the quarterfinals; a strange, disinterested performance from Sam Querrey; the Bryan brothers, No. 1 in doubles, crashed out early — but it also could have been worse. Serena Williams is in the quarterfinals (the first American to get there since Serena made it in 2007; no American man has been to that stage since 2003 (Andre Agassi) and the title looks like it's hers to lose; Robby Ginepri came out of nowhere (1-7 entering the tournament) to get to Round 4; two other American men reached the third round. By contrast, in 2007, all nine American men lost in the first round, a record for American futility at a major.

•Speaking of Serena … Obviously there's a long way to go — and injuries have often been an issue — but the world No. 1 and Australian Open champion certainly has a chance for a season Grand Slam this year. Roland Garros is the tough one, and quarterfinal foe Sam Stosur has been superb. But nemesis Justine Henin is out — thanks to Stosur — and there are no other major champions left in the draw. Jelena Jankovic, who still has to beat Yaroslava Shvedova in the quarters, is 4-4 against Serena and beat her a few weeks ago on clay in Rome. Elena Dementieva and Nadia Petrova are tough outs. None of the above, however, has broken through in a major. Breaking through against Serena is a tall order. Even if she wins the French, Serena is only halfway to a Slam. But she's the defending champion at Wimbledon and who would bet against her in New York if she has the first three in the bag. Not us.

•The US Open National Playoffs continue. Last week five more men and women advanced. A notable match from last week was a quarterfinal matchup at the USTA SoCal tournament where men's winner Cecil Mamiit, a former NCAA singles champion and Pan-American Games silver medalist, faced former U.S. Olympian and 1999 French Open doubles finalist Jeff Tarango. Mamiit prevailed, 6-2, 6-0.

•Two Americans, sophomores Bradley Klahn (Stanford) and Chelsey Gullickson (Georgia) swept the NCAA Division I men's and women' singles titles Monday in Athens, Ga. This is the second consecutive year that Americans have swept the NCAA singles titles, as Devin Britton (Mississippi) and Mallory Cecil (Duke) won the events in 2009.

•Final thoughts: Want a tennis lesson with Anna Kournikova? It will cost a little, but it's for charity. Click here.…Stat of the week: 35-1. Rafael Nadal's career record at Roland Garros. Overall, Nadal is an astounding 173-6 on clay since 2005. …Quote of the week: "When I win the point, I like to show the emotions; when I lose the point, I like to break the racket. People here like it." — Novak Djokovic, the No. 3 seed, who has advanced to the French Open quarterfinals.

USA TODAY's look at the world of tennis appears weekly. Contributing: The Associated Press; ATP World Tour; WTA Tour

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